Peter & John on The Path of Life

The women went to the tomb to put spices on the body of Jesus and found and empty tomb.  Men in dazzling white told them that Jesus was alive.

When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. (Luke 24:9-11 NIV)

The women who had gone to the tomb now believed, but that was hardly the case for the men.  They were going to need some more convincing.

So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (John 20:3-8 NIV)

Peter and John did not believe it until they saw it with their own eyes.  The stone was rolled away.  The guard was missing.  Jesus’ body was gone.  What the women were saying was true.  Jesus was gone.

(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying. (John 20:9-10 NIV)

The men were going to need still more convincing.  They body was missing, yes, but that doesn’t mean Jesus is alive.  They would need much more before they would be willing to believe.

I don’t know about you, but I find this lack of faith reassuring.  It’s helps me to know that those closest to Jesus were not convinced right away.  Peter was later called by Jesus, “rock.”  John was known as “the one that Jesus loved.”  Peter, James, and John were clearly the three closest to Jesus.  Yet, they did not believe that he arose from the dead.  If they needed convincing, then, perhaps, I can take their word for it once they are convinced.  They did not take Jesus’ resurrection on blind faith.  They needed to know more.

How about you?  Does faith come easy for you?  Are you able to take things on blind faith, or do you need a bit more convincing?